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The Top Headlines From AVweb's Expanded,
Illustrated News Coverage At AVweb's
NewsWire.

WELCOME
BACK TO LEVEL "ORANGE"
Washington, D.C.-area pilots can expect a return to using gateway
airports for security checks prior to entering the ADIZ thanks to the
increased terrorism alert announced Sunday. The FAA's Greg Martin told
AVweb he doesn't anticipate any increased security measures outside the
Washington area. Regardless, check the FAA's TFR Web
site and call 1-800-WX-BRIEF prior to flight -- be sure to request
all TFR/NOTAM information pertaining to or in the vicinity of your
intended route. Happy holidays.

U.S.
NAVY TO TEST FLYING SAUCER...
It may sound like something from Mars, but this pilotless flying saucer
is actually Russian and it has caught the eye of the U.S. Navy. The
pita-shaped Ekip drone could be flitting around the Navy's
Patuxent River test facility by 2007 thanks to a congressman who saw a
prototype on a tour of Russian aviation facilities last year. Developed
by Saratov Aviation, the craft takes off and lands on a
cushion of air, like a hovercraft, and needs less than 500 feet of
runway. The wheel-less drone would be propelled by "high-economy bypass
turbojet engines" and use "auxiliary high-economy dual generator
turboshaft engines ... for operation of air-cushion landing gear and
boundary layer control." The shape lends itself to lower structural
weight and loading while offering higher load-carrying capability. Rep. Curt
Weldon (R-Penn.) was sufficiently impressed that he passed the
information along to the military, and the Navy's Naval Air
Systems Command (NAVAIR) has agreed to help develop the flying
prototype and test it at Pax River. More...

...AS
TRULY AUTONOMOUS HELICOPTER FLIES IN OZ
Meanwhile, down under, an Australian company says it has created the
first true flying robot helicopter, one that doesn't need any help from
the ground or space to find its way around. The five-foot-long Mantis uses a robot brain linked to sensors that
enable it to "see" its surroundings and fly without a remote-control
pilot and without reference to GPS for navigation. "This is the first
UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) to use computerized vision with all its
equipment on board," Dr. Peter Corke, of CSIRO Complex System
Integration, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Corke said
GPS can be distorted or reflected in urban areas so Mantis sees and
thinks for itself. And the hardware is very, very light.
More...

A HOLIDAY GIFT
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access to WeatherTAP.com now through December 31, 2003. Real-time radar,
hi-res satellite imagery, storm tracks and custom locations in
WeatherTAP's RadarLab, complete aviation weather and much more. Check it
out at no-obligation today by entering User Name: AVWEB2003 and
Password: HOLIDAY. Then order a gift subscription for your favorite
pilot and yourself at http://www.avweb.com/sponsors/weathertap

MAKING
HAPPY HOLIDAYS...
Year after year, a squadron of fellow volunteer pilots join with Santa
to deliver the goods. While few of the aerial efforts have reached the
sort of legendary status reserved for the Jolly Old Elf himself, maybe
some are similarly deserving. One of the longest-running Yuletide
aviation benefit programs is Flying Santa of the Lighthouses, now run by
Flying Santa
Inc. Since 1929, Santa pilots have been delivering gifts to children
of families manning lighthouses on the northeast coast and boxes of
goodies to lighthouse keepers and Coast Guard personnel. This year,
three helicopters, one piloted by Flying Santa Inc. organizer George
Morgan and two by Coast Guard pilots, landed at 30 lighthouses from the
Canadian border to Long Island Sound. More...

...AND
CHARITY EFFORTS...
Not all erstwhile Santas descend from the heavens and dress in red. For
20 years, Pilots
For Kids, a group founded by airline pilots, has been visiting
hospitalized children, bringing them toys and other items to cheer them
up while they're ill. The pilots and cabin crew taking part in the
visits wear full uniform, to the delight of the kids. "The delight in
the children's eyes cannot be explained in words ..." reads the group's
Web site. The efforts come into sharp focus at Christmas for
Memphis-area FedEx pilots, who touched down recently at Hope House,
delivering good and gifts to the day care center for children affected
by HIV/AIDS. There's no shortage of grassroots efforts by pilots to help
out their neighbors, either. More...

...WHILE
THE FAA PLAYS GRINCH
The FAA, according to some, is not above stepping into the season's most
despised role. The agency has some strict guidelines in the use of
aircraft for charitable purposes and pilots, who have spent their own
money using their airplanes for the good of others, have found
themselves under investigation and even facing sanctions. Those taking
part in charity fundraisers or humanitarian projects should have a look
at FAR 61.113 to make sure they comply. There could also be some changes
to those rules via a controversial Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that is
stirring up aviation backers in Washington. The new rules would require
pilots taking part in charity events to have a minimum of 500 hours (up
from 200) and would limit them to four such flights a year. A pile of
paperwork also comes with the new restrictions. More...

GRANNY
HELICOPTER PILOT PLUCKED FROM ICE
A 63-year-old English grandmother and her 53-year-old male co-pilot are
recovering in a Chilean hospital after the helicopter they were trying
to fly around the world via the polar route crashed in Antarctica
Saturday. Officials credit Polar First Challenge co-pilot Colin Bodill with
saving Jenny Murray's life after the chopper went down in bad weather
about 120 miles from the Patriot Hills base on the frozen continent.
Despite serious chest injuries, Bodill was able to pull Murray, who
dislocated an elbow, from the wreckage and prepare for their survival in
minus-40-degree temperatures, before he collapsed from his injuries.
More...

PROTESTER
DINGS ENOLA GAY
Protesters made a dent in security measures, not to mention the Enola
Gay, in an apparently well-planned but poorly executed attempt to make
their mark on the controversy that has followed the restored B-29 to its
new resting place. After reportedly assuring staff at the newly opened
Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center that they wouldn't cause any trouble, one of
the protesters tossed a jar of red paint at the bomber, which dropped
the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945. The aluminum
yielded, however, and instead of smashing on the plane, the jar left a
dent and shattered on the floor below. More...

POLITICIANS
SAY NO TO RUNWAYS
Trees, and a local council's unwillingness to pay to have them removed,
are threatening Danbury Municipal Airport in Connecticut. The FAA
and the state are willing to pay 97 percent of the $4.5 million cost.
But Mayor Mark Boughton said the airport is a drain on civic coffers and
he's reluctant to spend any more money on it. The FAA has warned the
city it will displace the thresholds of the airport's two runways if the
trees aren't cut down soon and until the trees are gone, the FAA won't
contribute to any maintenance and repair costs at the airport. "The net
effect of this could be shutting the airport," said Boughton. Said
airport administrator Paul Estefan, "We're going to lose our runway and
there's almost no money involved." More...

OWNER PERFORMED
MAINTENANCE SEMINARS FROM CESSNA PILOTS ASSOCIATIONBeing able to
legally perform a preventive maintenance operation allowed by the FARs,
and having the knowledge and capability to do it correctly can be two
different things. The Cessna Pilots Association (CPA) offers an Owner
Performed Maintenance Seminar to give the Cessna owner/operator the
technical and hands-on knowledge needed to learn more about their Cessna
aircraft and become even more physically intimate with their aviation
passion. There are only a few slots left for the January 16-17, 2004
course. Call CPA at 805 922-2580 and mention this AVflash, or go online
for more information at http://www.avweb.com/sponsors/cpa

THE
SHROUD OF KITTY HAWK
As autographs go, this one could be one of the most historic aviation
artifacts around. Scientists at the National Center for Forensic Science
will examine a swatch of cloth that may be from the original Wright
Flyer and signed by Orville Wright. Jack and Sandy Schweinsberg, of
Eustis, Fla., bought the framed piece of cloth from a family member in
the 1980s. It's inscribed: "This is a piece of the original wing
covering of the Kitty Hawk plane flown December 17, 1903." It is signed,
"Orville Wright." The Schweinsbergs have no doubt about its authenticity
and there might even be a romantic twist to the story.
More...

COMMERCIAL
SERVICE WELCOMED ... AND BANISHED
It's a tale of two cities, aviation style. As Naples, Fla., celebrates
the resumption of commercial air service to its municipal airport,
New Jersey congressman Steve Rothman (D-N.J.) is trumpeting a new provision
that has banished scheduled charter service from Teterboro (known to some as the busiest GA airport
in the country). Reporters and TV crews greeted the arrival of a Cape
Air flight from Key West to Naples that marked a new beginning for
scheduled service. The airline left Naples last June because business
was too slow. Now it's operating two daily round trips to the Keys and
serving as a Continental Connection to Miami International. At
Teterboro, it's federal legislation that will limit commercial
operations. More...

PILOTS
HELP PETS CHEAT DEATH
It's as good a reason to fly as any and sometimes the reward is a big,
wet kiss. Flying
Paws, a non-profit group of Arizona pilots, fatten their logbooks by
getting abandoned pets away from shelters, where they may face
euthanasia, and into new, loving homes. Marilyn Butler Subach founded
the program a year ago after rescuing an abandoned and abused golden
retriever from a remote Indian Reservation. That got her thinking that
maybe there was a need to provide emergency flights for animals. "It's
been a godsend," Casey Kent, who runs the Chesapeake Bay Retriever
Rescue, told The Arizona Republic. More...

OUR PLANE
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ownership...GUARANTEED! Locations throughout California, Texas, New
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principal and prime rate financing by calling 1-877-775-2631 and mention
this AVflash, or go online at http://www.avweb.com/sponsors/ourplane

ON
THE FLY...
Virgin Atlantic pilot was charged with trying to fly after
drinking...Stealthy threesome will fly over Rose Bowl
Parade...Flying model aircraft banned in English town after girl's
death...College of the Ozarks is closing its aviation maintenance
course...White powder suspended flights for seven hours from
Vancouver to the U.S.More...

WINGX FROM
HILTON SOFTWARE IS A PILOT'S DREAM COME TRUE! WingX is a
Microsoft Pocket PC application designed by pilots for pilots. WingX was
designed using the latest .NET technology from Microsoft to create an
application that pilots can use while down at the airport and away from
their home PCs. Always have your aircraft's information, weight and
balance, route information, E6B page, time information, medical and
pilot expiration information, and document database at your fingertips.
This is amazing. See for yourself at http://www.avweb.com/sponsors/hiltonsoftware

NEW
ARTICLES AND FEATURES ON AVWEBCEO of the Cockpit #27: Be It Further Resolved ...Even grumpy
old airline pilots know that change is necessary, and sometimes change
begins at home. There are a few things AVweb's CEO of the Cockpit wants
to be different in the new year, and he's even going to try and change
some things about himself. More...

BUSINESS
AVFLASH
HAVE YOU SIGNED UP yet for AVwebs NO-COST twice monthly Business
AVflash? Reporting on breaking news, Business AVflash also focuses on
the companies, the products and the industry leaders that make headlines
in the Business of Aviation. Business AVflash is a must read! Sign up
today at http://www.avweb.com/profile/

FAA APPROVES
AVEMCO-KING PRACTICAL RISK MANAGEMENT COURSE FOR WINGS PROGRAM
Plus, most pilots will be eligible to receive the full 10%
Avemco Safety Rewards premium credit through participation in the Wings
program. Since the start of the Avemco Safety Rewards Program there has
been an increasing awareness of the importance of risk management
training for all pilots. Avemco is a leading pleasure and business
general aviation insurer in the U.S. For more information on this
program and the advantages of buying direct by call 888-241-7891 and
mention this AVflash, or go online at http://www.avweb.com/sponsors/avemco

WIN A PAIR OF
SCHEYDENS, AVIATION'S FINEST EYEWEAR A pair of Scheydens will be
given away every other week to a lucky AVweb winner, a retail value up
to $395! The unique flip up design has become the choice of pilots who
demand quality and function in every aspect of aviation. Handmade
titanium frames, quality lenses, a Rosewood case, plush micro fiber bag
and cloth are standard equipment on all styles. For more information and
to register to win go tohttp://www.avweb.com/sponsors/scheyden

COMM 1 IS THE
PERFECT GIFT FOR ALL PILOTS ON YOUR HOLIDAY SHOPPING LIST Comm 1
Radio Simulator contains comprehensive tutorials, and fully interactive
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1 will send a complimentary multimedia headset with every order through
December 31 at http://www.avweb.com/sponsors/comm1

Have a product or service to advertise on AVweb? A question on
marketing? Send it to AVweb's sales team: mailto:sales@avweb.com.

Let's all be careful out there, okay?

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